Thane: Five cops bunk work, drink on duty; one drowns in lake

Five constables from the Kalyan Special Branch missed an entire day of work to go gallivanting and drinking while on duty; in an intoxicated state, one of them drowned in a lake

An evening of gallivanting and irresponsible drinking while on duty ended in the worst way possible for five police constables, after one of them drowned in a lake in Thane on Thursday. All five cops belonged to the Special Branch (Kalyan), the state’s intelligence gathering unit and it has been learnt that they had bunked the entire day at work, attending a wedding in the first half of the day and then partying in the evening.

Onlookers gather as a rescue team attempts to find the body of head constable Bhaskar Harad from Panzar talao

The incident happened around 5 pm, while the group was in Shahapur. Ravindra Deshmukh, Rajaram Kesarakar, Jaywant Gawde, Ravindra Pawar accompanied head constable Bhaskar Harad, who was supposed to meet a prospective groom for his daughter there. However, as they had reached early, they decided to party and drink alcohol. In that inebriated state, Harad decided to take a dip in a nearby lake, Panzar talao.

When Harad did not emerge from the water, his colleagues got worried. “The five had gone for some personal work, after which one of them drowned. Harad entered the water but never returned, and when the other constables realised that the water was deep, they immediately informed the police and fire brigade,” said M V Sakale, police inspector of Shahapur police station.

The police are still trying to fish Harad’s body from the lake, and will initiate an enquiry against the errant constables. If the investigations confirm that they indeed missed work and were drinking on duty, action would be taken against them, said the police.